alrobin

Ian, What a fantastic idea! I had never thought of that! Brilliant! Wish I was a little closer and could come to your presentation too! I find that if I use very long dissolve times (> 3 sec) I do achieve the "third image" in digital, but it is not as distinct or as smooth as in an old-fashioned slide show. With my "Magician" I can even fade one image off and another one on to half-intensity and leave the third image on-screen for a brief instant. Your suggestion of developing this effect in Photoshop sounds like an excellent solution for digital. Digital techniques provide for many other imaginative effects not easily achievable using the old technology. It would be interesting to compile a list of all these here in this forum. Do you have any others "up your sleeve"? All the best, Al

Bonjour, Michel, I just loaded and watched your show - quelles images belles! But then I am biased because I love winter. Looks like you have some great opportunities for backcountry alpine touring! I envy you! Now on to technicalities. I agree with the others that the dissolves are a bit too fast, especially for the choice of music. I would have liked to have longer to look at the images, and have them dissolve more slowly into each other. As nice as they are, you could easily leave out some of the images. Secondly, the music does definitely cut off about 2 sec too soon at the end. I got the impression you were rushing things to get in all of the images. Just my impression from watching the show. Thirdly, there is a slight bit of flicker. You could completely eliminate this by going to 3 or 4-second dissolves, and of course, fewer images. I use nothing shorter than 2-second dissolves if I want minimum flicker. I am using a Celeron III (400 MHz) processor, with over 7 Mb Ram, many Mb of free disk space, and a 3dfx Voodoo 3000 video card (16 or 32 mb VRAM?). I haven't tried your show on my laptop yet, A Dell "Inspiron 8000", which uses a PIII (700 MHz) processor, 256 Mb Ram, ATI video card with 32 Mb VRAM, but the shows usually have less flicker on it than on the desktop. Keep up the good work - I look forward to seeing more of your shows. Au revoir, Al

Thanks, Harold. I retried your technique, and I am happy to report I got it to work as you described I was saving the Excel file as a ".wks" file and changing the name, instead of saving as a ".txt" file. When I saved as a ".txt" file I used the "Tab delimited" rather than the "Unicode" mode. Also, previously, I was "importing" the ".pte" file in data mode, using "=" as a delimiter, rather than just clicking and dragging it in from MS Explorer, and manipulating it from there. (I think the "=" delimiter method would still be possible, but it involves unneccessary work.) Now to get busy and write a macro . Ciao, Al

Rudi, I set a black background for my slide shows so that when they are projected I get the most pleasing transitions between different-size (e.g. vertical and horizontal) images. When I resize the monitor, the black background still fills the screen. I added a tiled background to one of my shows which uses 800 x 600 images. Even with my monitor set at 1280 x 1024, the tiles still fill the screen. I had to add the "background" to each image, though, in order to see the tiles. I think your problem exists only when you are adding many objects to a single image. A solution might be to combine the objects in Photoshop first and compress to a single image so they do not scatter over the screen when the monitor is resized. Re the ability to preview the impact of different screen settings, there is a "Preview in" option in "Object editor" mode for doing this. Don't know how effective this is, but it seems to change the size of the image on the screen when I change the settings. You can even set it to preview in a screen size larger than the one you are currently using. Ciao, Al

Guido, I agree with you - for the moment, at least. It's very hard (I almost said "impossible") to beat the colour saturation and density range of projected 35 mm or 2 1/4" transparencies. And they are projectible to much larger sizes than digital images images (i.e. much more information contained in each slide). But the quality of digital presentations is improving almost weekly, and is already at the point of "respectibility" (mind you, this is all relative, and some will be convinced or impressed less than others.) But in weighing the odds, one has to consider the ease of production and presentation, as well, and weigh it against the lesser quality and ask whether that quality is good enough for the particular application. In some cases, the real transparencies will win out, but in most, I would venture, the digital image quality is now good enough. I would even say amazingly good, considering where it was this time last year. There are also several other factors to consider. It is much easier to keep a digital show together - most of my old shows have been "sabotaged" over the years as I have used images from them for other purposes, so I will have a hard time pulling some of them together again. And, the technology used to show them is no longer practical. Some would point out correctly that digital techniques are changing, too, but at least it is usually possible to convert to new digital technologies as they come along. And, given the popularity of digital cameras and scanners, I would venture that jpegs and tiffs are here to stay for a while. Another factor in favour of digital is the versatility of the medium, and the number of possible applications (e.g. web access, ease of sending to friends and relatives, etc.). Finally, some of my old slides are showing signs of age (scratches, mould, light damage, colour deterioration, etc.) So, I have no option but to scan them, retouch them as much as possible, and use them digitally from now on. Just some more food for thought! Ciao, Al

Mark, Here is the Excel reference in my previous message: http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums//index...ct=ST&f=2&t=142 (hope this makes sense - I copied it from the "Properties" info attached to the message, but it doesn't highlight as a URL usually does). The title of the thread is "Wishing", posted by JRR. I tried the Excel technique, unsuccessfully, but apparently I should have modified only the timing section, so will give it another whirl and report back. Will post a typical Excel file, along with macros, on my web site if I get it to work. Needs some further development, though. Ciao, Al

This thread is very interesting for me as I have been doing multi-projector shows for years as a hobby, to show to our local Camera Club as well as to other friends and relatives. I even once designed and built a microprocessor-controlled 4-projector controller (in only 4 Kb of RAM!) as at the time I couldn't afford a commercial professional unit. But I only put together two 4-projector shows, as the process was just too time-consuming for what it was worth. I now have a fancy computer-controlled professional 3-projector unit (after my home-built unit became too tedious to set up, and too tempermental and unreliable to run, especially in front of a large audience.) I use two projectors to achieve a pleasing dissolve between slides, and the third one mainly to overlay titles, comments, and for fast-sequence animation effects. However, I am smitten by the capability of current digital technology, and may never do another old-fashioned multiprojector show again. With digital, we now have the capability of an unlimited number of virtual projectors. So, now I, too, have a challenge ahead of me in converting my old electromechanical shows to digital. However, given the capabilities inherent in the new technology, including PTE, I can now add many more interesting features to these shows, and look forward to the process of updating them (as soon as I can find the time). Ciao, Al

Rudi's suggestion is a good one, but I, personally, don't want to be notified every time there is a change in the web site - just certain threads. However, I no longer see a change in colour in a thread topic on the main menu after I have visited that thread, unless it is so faint I can't distinguish it on my hi-res monitor. It used to be there with the old forum. I really miss this feature, as I used it to identify when there was a new message in the thread. I wonder if it could be added back on. Separating the forum into different topics would help some in keeping track of interesting threads, PROVIDED members use them as intended. Ciao, Al

Harold, I tried your technique, and when I attempted to load the modified file back into PTE, I received a message saying that I was trying to load an older version of PTE file, and the program refused to load the file. But, the slide show I used it on was created in version 3.80, and used Excel 2000 to manipulate the data. I have developed a set of formulae to separate out the data from the text, and could easily put these into a simple set of macros to automate the process, but if it won't load, there is no point in trying. Has anyone else experienced this? Ciao, Al

Mark, Welcome to the Forum! The easiest way (IMHO) to fully sync a show is to join the music pieces together in a wave-editing software such as Cool Edit or Acoustica or others (some are freeware). With a single music selection you can then use all of either the precise or automatic sync'ing features of PTE. This will also give you the maximum control over the time interval between selections. Also, someone mentioned in another thread that you can import a .pte file into MS Excel, and manipulate the time data in the file either manually or using formulae and 'macroe'. And, I can relate to your frustrations as a programmer in seeing all these possibilities for improvements and not being able to do anything to help except to keep pestering Igor. But then, everyone has his or her own pet peeves and Igor is kept pretty busy just juggling our different priorities. Ciao, Al

Congratulations! Al

Hi, Vid, To manually sort the slides, just select the folder where they are stored (on the left-hand side of the screen) and "pull" them over into the right-hand list (or highlight and click "add") in the order in which you want to show them. Then, you can do further editing of the order merely by "dragging and dropping" the individual slides up and down. You can also select other folders on the left-hand side to select slides from other locations on your hard drive or even from a cd. (you will need the cd installed, and the slides in their original location on the hard drive if you want to make changes to the "P2E" show. Once the "exe" file is created, however, this won't matter any more. Also, remember, you only need one copy of the image in the folder represented by the left-hand list to be able to use it as many times as you wish on the right-hand side. Ciao, and Happy New Year, Al

Hi, Vid, Don't you people ever sleep? You can add a number of thumbnails as image objects, with the "object editor", to an introductory index page with "actions" set for each thumbnail so as to transfer the viewer to the slide number of the full image. Hope this helps. Ciao, Al

Thanks for the New Years' present, Igor!! Sure would like to see the ability to change fade and dissolve transition intervals in the same window as the music synchronization functions, though. Will have to check to see if you have added it along with the other improvements. Ciao, and Happy New Year to all! Al

Monty, That's great. I had the same experience. However, at the risk of throwing cold water on your exuberance, unless Igor has embedded the fonts in PTE, you will see them only on your own pc, or on those other pc's which have the same fonts loaded. If you are only running the show for your own enjoyment, that's fine. However, it can be a nuisance if you plan to distribute it to others. In order to make sure the viewer always sees the same font as in the original, if it is for an important title or music credits, etc., I now add the text in Photoshop to a copy of the slide which it will be combined with, and rasterize the text or merge down the layers and save as a separate "title" image for PTE. The end result is the same as if you had created the text in the object editor, and the font will always be the same as intended. Ciao, Al

Thanks to you both, Andrew and Guido, for your kind wishes. It's nice to be included in such a stellar group, all with similar interests! Hope I can contribute a little from time to time in return! Ciao, Al

Rudi, You could also do as I have done on large shows and add a text object to a one-slide Introduction slide show, informing the viewer that the main show takes a long time to load, and suggesting that he or she go for a coffee. After reading the note, the viewer would then click on a button to load the longer show and be prepared for the long wait. Ciao, Al

Hi, Tim, Let me try to answer some of your questions. I am a relative newcomer to PTE, so perhaps someone else can provide alternate, and possibly better, suggestions. 1) Depends on which "preview" you are referring to. If you are sync'ing to music, you can re-start the thumbnail "preview" on the timeline wherever you want after you start it first from the beginning and then pause it. However, it would be handy to also be able to start the large-format "preview" from a certain specified sequence. 2) I get a white box around the text while it is being edited, but it disappears once I am finished and click elsewhere on the background. 4) The "loading" dialogue box works for me. Maybe your second show wasn't large enough to trigger the dialogue box? 5) You could fudge the show to start at different pre-arranged sequences if you created several smaller shows, and added a button to the intro screen for each "sub-show". But, I agree, it would be handy to have more control over the running of a synced show. This would also include being able to pause, fast-forward and reverse. Hope this helps some. Ciao, Al

Thanks, Igor. You are doing a great job! And we're really not trying to rush you - just a bit impatient, but I'm sure you will take your time and as a result turn out even better improvements and additions. Good Luck, and all the best in the New Year! Ciao, Al

Tom, That sounds like a good interim measure. Putting 400 images into a slide show with brand-new technology this close to Christmas is really asking for trouble, to say nothing of the technological risk of having it not perform smoothly the day of the performance. Maybe next time you should leave a little more breathing space. However, I strongly urge you to stick with PTE as it is, without doubt, the best system for digital still slide shows, especially for the money, that you will find anywhere. That's why its fans are so loyal. And it's going to get even better!! I understand that PTE payments and delivery of reg keys are done through a third party, and so, this close to Christmas, with everyone out partying, etc., it is understandable that, humans being human, things might get a little backed-up. (I never take in a roll of film for developing the week of Christmas for just that reason - I had a roll of film lost once that way, and vowed never to do it again. ) But, if you stick it out with PTE, the Christmas slide show next year will be a blast! Ciao, and best of luck, Al

If you'll allow me to step in here, Igor, while you are formulating your response, I have a suggestion which might help. One of the things on my 'wish list' in another thread on this forum was for a table of image titles, dissolve (transition) times, and times from the start for each sequence, etc., which could be printed out (or even saved as a text data file). Then, having the original jpegs saved safely away, it should be possible to readily recreate the show in any new system that comes along, provided that system also allowed one to input this data at least manually (or, better still, as an electronic data base). Ciao, Al

Arion have an interesting new GUI for their multiple slide-projector control systems. It uses a time-line on a computer screen, with a line for each projector, showing graphically which projector is on or off, the duration of each sequence, the duration of each transition, both fade-on and fade-off, (using triangular shapes to represent the varying intensity of the lamps), and also showing the intensity of each projector lamp during the sequence, since this is also adjustable (might be another feature for PTE ?) And the best part of this system is that each parameter can be modified by simply clicking and dragging with the cursor! They have added a digital music feature which now allows one to play back the accompanying music or narration in sync with the sequencing control program, even while making modifications to the various parameters, in much the same way that PTE now provides for instant testing of the synchronization while clicking and dragging a representation of the start of each sequence on the timeline. Now, if they can do all this for an old-fashioned electromechanical system, surely it would be a 'piece of cake' to provide a similar capability for a digital system like PTE?? An additional useful feature would be the ability to display a table of all the sequences, with their identities and parameters (dissolve times ON, dissolve times OFF, durations, and cumulative times from the start of the show) and be able to print out this list if desired. It should be constantly updated during the performance of the above-mentioned changes. Anyway, Santa, this is my wish-list for this Christmas - hope it's not too late. Ciao, Al

Igor, Nice to hear 3.90 is in the mill. Thank-you so much for your dedication to ongoing improvements! I vote for the "default" option for cursor control. However, IMHO, the two new features most needed are: - the ability to change the transition time of a sequence in the "sync to music" timeline window. - the ability to pause a synchronized slide show and then start it again by hitting the same key or mouse button once more, all the while keeping the show in sync with the music. After those, I would place in order of importance the following: - other slide show 'run' controls such as fast-forward and reverse (keeping in sync with the music). - thumb-nail editing of the order of slides in the show (similar to "SmoothShow", one of PTE's upcoming competitors . - 'ghosting' or 'greying-out' control options which are not available when certain other options, such as the 'Synchronize slideshow ...' option, are selected. (The 'help' note associated with this latter option is out of date now that it is possible to change the duration of each slide from the synchronization time-line. Also, the note does not mention that the control options assignable to the cursor, such as 'pause', etc., do not function when the 'Synchronize' option is selected.) Sorry, I get a bit carried away when I think of new features and design possibilities, but I feel that these ideas are worth considering. Maybe not right away, but soon, eh? My two cents worth, anyway. Best of the season! Ciao, Al